Woman gives birth in hotel bathtub after being turned down by hospital: Is this the future of socialized medicine in America?

by Jonathan Benson, staff writer

(NaturalNews) If Michelle Booth's recent experience with the socialized health care system of the U.K. is any indication of the quality of care that will soon be delivered under Obamacare in the U.S., then Americans are in for a very rude awakening. According to the U.K.'s Daily Express, 39-year-old Booth was literally turned away from the maternity ward at University College Hospital recently, and had to check into a nearby hotel to give birth to her son in a bathtub.

It is the type of situation that one would expect to occur in some third-world country, not in an "advanced," industrialized nation like the U.K. that claims to be a leader in progressive health care. But it is precisely what can, and does, happen when health care is basically rationed out by a centralized governing authority rather than provided based on demand in a truly free market.

According to reports, hospital workers at University College London were not convinced that Booth was in the final stages of labor, and thus turned her away in accordance with National Health Service guidelines concerning pregnancy care. Even though Booth herself knew that a baby was on the way, the system would not comply, which left the expecting mother in a difficult position.

With no other perceived option at her disposal, Booth decided to check in at the nearby four-star Radisson Edwardian Grafton Hotel with her husband Richard. She reportedly took two doses of paracetamol, a mild analgesic medicine commonly used to relieve minor aches and pains, and four hours later delivered an eight-pound, eight-ounce baby boy in the bathtub of their hotel room.

"The truth of it was I was very close to giving birth," recalled Booth about her experience at University College Hospital. "Basically, they said there was nowhere for us to go."

Though unconventional in every sense of the word, Booth's hotel delivery experience went remarkably well. Reports indicate that, shortly after their child's birth, Booth and her husband called paramedics, who came and cut the baby's umbilical cord. They then brought Booth and her newborn child right back to the hospital across the street to be monitored.

"Richard found the hotel. All the staff were brilliant," added Booth, as quoted by Daily Express. "They upgraded us, which was really sweet. We were all laughing and joking with them about room service and saying, 'We promise we won't have a baby.' But then we did."

Responding to the situation, hospital director Pat O'Brien reiterated the official position of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence that women perceived to be in the early stages of labor stay home until they reach the more advanced stages. O'Brien also reportedly congratulated Booth and her husband on their successful delivery.

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